The present invention relates generally to the field of women's garments, and, in particular, to a new and useful garment for covering at least the upper body, such as a camisole, that includes an interior bra structure with non-stretching side panels for firmly yet gently supporting the breasts without the need for underwires or padding.
Known camisoles with extra breast support used a simple interior bra (often called a shelf-bra) built into camisoles. Interior bras are desirable because the wearer has some support without the need for a separate bra that may not be compatible with the outer layer camisole (neckline shape, straps, etc). Previous shelf-bras, however, minimize the wearer's bustline, making the cup size appear smaller and less flattering than a separate bra. In essence, these prior structures solved one problem but created another.
Another previous structure is a true built-in bra, that is, an actual bra that is attached permanently to the camisole. While these bras work, the cups, padding, and underwire restrict and limit the market because they only fit specific bust sizes. The padding typically used creates an unnatural and often “lumpy” appearance and many of these devices show through the outer body of the garment, distorting the overall appearance.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,510,012 to Edelman disclosed a woman's garment with a built-in, underwire bra for support. Slips with bra structure are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,558,420 to D'Amato; U.S. Pat. No. 3,343,545 to Kress; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,565,081 to Barg.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,372,320 to Siber discloses a garment with a built-in bust support in the form of a torso-encircling band arrangement sewn into the front of the garment and extending under the breasts of a wearer of the garment.
An integrally formed garment for female wear which is adapted to lend shaping to the figure of a woman but which eliminates the need for a brassiere is also disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,590,945 to Fiel. Also see U.S. Pat. No. 4,798,557 to Scott for a camisole with underwire bra garment, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,033,986 to Feigenbaum et al. for a woman's bodysuit for exercising or swimming, comprises an outer covering for encasing at least a portion of a woman's torso, including the bust, abdomen, hips and rear regions, with an incorporated bra-like structure.
A camisole embodying brassiere cups joined with a separate stretchable strip laterally placed at the base of brassiere cups is disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 5,045,018 to Costanzo. Also see U.S. Pat. No. 6,530,820 to Katze et al. for a garment with an underwire bra structure therein, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,443,805 to Kirkwood for a bra shelf and application thereof in a camisole and similar garments.
A need remains for a camisole or other similar garment for the torso of a woman, which includes breast support without underwires and without extra padding, while maintaining a flattering natural shape to the bustline without minimizing the bust.